How to Master Successfully Any Language of the World 17
A1:
Speaking/Listening: CAN understand basic instructions or take part in a basic factual
conversation on a predictable topic.
Reading: CAN understand basic notices, instructions or information.
Writing: CAN complete basic forms, and write notes including times, dates and places.
It is extremely important to start speaking with proper accent from the very beginning.
Most common cultural issues and non-verbal communication should be studied here, too.
Words – From Life Situations
As a rule of thumb, 150-300 for A1 level, 300-900 for A2
Trying to set an exact number of words for any level is rather difficult and useless. In
order to acquire the same skills, some languages will require more words than others –
just because of their grammar or the quantity of meanings their words usually have.
At this level you better learn words as a part of fixed phrases and sentences. At this level
you generally have very little (if any) experience with how the language sounds – which
sounds often come together, and which don’t. So, you may use mnemonics, especially at
A1 level. Use only bilingual dictionaries. If you still want to use a monolingual
dictionary, it should have VERY many pictures. But even that may be not enough for
explaining abstract meanings or situations. All the explanations, therefore, should be
done in your native language, or at least in another language, that you know well.
There are theories that say you should hear only target language around, and all the
explanation should be done in it. Like native language toddlers. But, what these theories
DON’T say is that toddlers usually have a few years just to learn the language, and even
after that they go to school and learn the language for even longer. Do you have, let’s say
at least four spare years just to learn to speak like a 6-year old? And at least 8 years more
to learn to speak like an educated adult?
Toddlers should not just learn the words and how to build up sentences; they are learning
objects, situations etc, too. As a second language learner, you usually know the names of
most of the objects in your native language, so why should the task be additionally
complicated? You usually don’t have that much time as toddlers have (a few years for
learning a language). Showing a table or a window and naming them in the target
language is very good. Walking a few steps and saying “go” in the target language only –
would be fun. But it will be a waste of time, if your teacher spends an hour, trying to
mimic meanings like “but” or “how”. Instead of just spending a couple of minutes and
explaining them in your native language. And some grammar constructions will take
Copyright © 2012 Dmitry Slomov. All rights reserved.
Dmitry Slomov is a language learning consultant, a tutor and the author of the Russian Language Course – Lessons with Dmitry
Contact Dmitry at: http://www.courseofrussian.com/en/contact.html
